I am one of the reasons why basal cell carcinoma is overloading the NHS. This was featured in the Daily Mail, which I read at my hairdressers (I rarely tell people I go to ‘Bubbles’ to have my haircut). It appears that GP’s now have to use their iPhone to photo patients with suspect skin lesions. Three photos are required for a consultant to decide whether the patient can be referred for treatment.

Picatoed

I recently treated skin damage on my face with Picato, made by LEO Pharma. That’s not a friend of Max Factor but an example of big pharma. It’s a prescription gel that burns out the basal cancer cells and leaves nice pink new skin. It’s not pleasant and makes me feel unwell for a time. The problem is, no sooner do I remove them than others pop up somewhere else on the face or body. It appears that turning 70 is when these skin problems accelerate.

Scarface

When skin lesions appear, the first option is cryotherapy, to freeze them off. If not, a more aggressive prescription jel might be used. If it is more advanced then surgery is contemplated. Previously, I have had a chunk removed off my forehead and another off my left leg. The most recent problem was a sinus on my nose. This is rather like a small volcano, only upside down. The NHS, obviously under pressure, referred me to the Nuffield in Bournemouth. The nose was anaesthetized, the sinus excised and skin from my cheek used to cover the incision. I ended up with a jagged 3 inch suture line that required 25 stitches. It was beautiful piece of work even though intially I looked as if I have been glassed in the face.

Sunny Disposition

Zuri, in 2200 BC, and I have much in common. We both came from working stock, we are outdoor people. She is bronzed from her foraging, me from my childhood milk round and a lifetime of gardening, cycling and running. She did not live beyond 40 years and would not have developed skin cancer. For me, my past has caught up with me. There are no regrets but I will constantly remind you, my readers, to protect your skin from sun and basal cell carcinoma. Alas, I fear my warning is too late!

After 45 years in bereavement services, I retired in 2006. Subsequently, I wrote 'A Guide to Natural Burial' in 2010 and 'R.I.P. Off! or: The British Way of Death' in 2012'. I moved to Christchurch, Dorset in 2012 to join the oldest population in the UK. My book 'My Pagan Ancestor Zuri - A Parallel Journey: Christchurch to Stonehenge' is due to be published in July 2019. My vision is to show the relevance of history, in this case pre-history, in the way we live today and in the future, through disseminating knowledge and understanding. The book highlights how a small area of Dorset and Wiltshire played a significant role in the creation of Stonehenge and the first common culture or civilisation in Britain, then fell into agrarian decline only to re-emerge as a retirement hotspot; Avonlands became picturesque for the affluent pensioner.